Yuan Yao saw this, her eyes shimmering like autumn waters, and smiled lightly, saying, "Are you still worried that the Ming Hun珠 I've given you might be counterfeit?" There was a subtle hint of irony in her tone. Han Li did not immediately reply. Instead, he studied the pearl closely before responding, "As for whether it's genuine—based solely on the shadow spirit aura on its surface, I'm fairly certain. However, I know very little about the Tí Hún beasts. Could you tell me what effects the fusion of this pearl might have on the body?" While speaking, Han Li kept his gaze fixed steadily on Yuan Yao's beautiful eyes. "Unsettling? How could that be! If there were indeed any issues, why would I personally have gone through the process of refining this pearl? During the refinement, there might be a few minor discomforts, but as long as one endures them, everything will be fine!" Yuan Yao remained composed, delivering the remarks with a calm, understated tone. "Minor discomforts?" Han Li furrowed his brow, gazed at the woman for a moment, then glanced at the bead, realizing that her words must contain some truth—but could not yet discern any obvious anomaly. After a moment's pause, he decided to accept the bead for now and study it more thoroughly later. Should any harm indeed arise, he would merely refrain from refining it—after all, with this bead, he could still command the Crying Soul Beast. With that thought, he carefully placed the bead into his storage pouch. Yet the young lady believed, with the golden and silver beetle armor that Brother Han possessed, such a situation was quite unlikely. After slightly wrinkling her nose, she smiled warmly—her smile now as radiant and enchanting as a blooming flower. Before Han Li could take a moment to admire the scene, he simply turned and walked away without a word. Yuan Yao, seeing this, smiled gently and moved gracefully beside him, walking a few steps before walking side by side with Han Li, appearing very close and intimate. As she drew nearer to Han Li, the cold, refreshing aura of the ice beads became more abundant, so naturally she adjusted her position to feel more comfortable. "To be honest, this Ice-Fire Path has been rather strange. How could there be a black desert, and such powerful flying ants that not only withstand attacks from magical artifacts but also breathe out black flames to form intricate patterns? If it weren’t for the few streaks of green fire lightning I currently carry, I might not have made it to meet Brother Han at all. Even so, they managed to destroy one of my defensive ancient relics. Yuan Yao walked with a relaxed expression, her delicate lips moving slightly as she complained. Clearly, she had not recognized the origin of the iron-fire ants. "Have black desert ants ever appeared before?" Hearing this, Han Li was momentarily startled and asked in a low, serious tone. He himself found it somewhat unusual that such a powerful spiritual creature as the iron-fire ants should appear here now. Aside from cultivators with special abilities or those equipped with powerful artifacts, even late Jin Dan stage cultivators often struggled to survive when entering the black desert. "No! These iron-fire ants have never been seen before on the molten rock path. Previously, cultivators passing through this stage merely faced high temperatures and various hazardous terrains, encountering only occasional fire beasts. Never had they seen such strange flying ants. If they knew of such a formidable ant colony, undoubtedly, far fewer cultivators would have dared to venture onto the molten rock path. Most likely, many would have turned back even after crossing the ghost mist. No cultivator would risk their lives lightly. "Yuan Yao clearly knows a great deal, and answers without hesitation. Yet Yu Rong also shows a look of puzzlement. "So, the Bing-Huo Sect must be out of the ordinary!" Han Li's eyes flash with a moment of thoughtful reflection, as he murmurs these words. ... "Absolutely out of the ordinary—someone must have interfered!" Inside the expanse of the Xuanjing Sect, where crimson ice pillars stretch skyward, Qing Yi Monks stands with his hands behind his back, gazing upward and speaking the same words. Around him, countless streaks of emerald light swirl and dance in a continuous motion above and below his body, while outside, hundreds of silver creatures press in, their forms resembling mice. These creatures have silvery fur that gleams, and each bears a short, delicate silver horn on its head, making them both elegant and compact. They continuously transform into streaks of silver light, like arrows, striking the elder with their horns, producing thunderous booms that sound like a storm—remarkably powerful and impressive. Yet those green glimmers before the elder remained perfectly still, undisturbed despite the barrage of silver light. "You're all going to die!" the scholar-dressed elder seemed growing increasingly annoyed by the strange mice's attacks. Could it be...? The elder's face darkened as he pondered, standing motionless in place. "Hmph! Since the Pyrocrystal Path has revealed the Silver-Glow Mouse, the Molten-Rock Path will surely be different from before. That young man, Han—well, he's going to have a real trouble!" Qingyi Monks sighed in frustration, emitting a sharp, impatient exhalation, and murmured anxiously to himself. Then, with a deep sigh, he swayed slightly before vanishing completely. Among the towering blood-colored ice pillars, only the scattered bodies of silver-furred creatures remained, creating a strangely eerie scene. Besides a few who hadn't passed through these two points, I suspect most of the Dan-jing stage cultivators from both the Zheng and Mo sects will perish here. When faced with Wan Tianming and Man-Brow and others, they'll surely no longer be able to put up a pretense. "A voice, slightly concerned, remarked. "Pretense? Do you really think the maneuvers we've orchestrated at Xu Tian Hall remained unknown to both Zheng and Mo? They've always been aware. We merely pretended not to know in the past, because our Xing Palace was then dominant. They knew we could only manage minor restrictions at Xu Tian Hall, and thus couldn't pose a serious threat—only causing a few Dan-jing cultivators from Zheng and Mo to fall during each treasure-seeking expedition." A colder, calm voice replied without urgency. "The Black Desert and the Blood-Lit Forest are the most formidable restrictions I can control. Having deployed them now, I still feel a sense of regret. After all, these were masterfully acquired by our late Xing Palace's previous master, through considerable effort." The first voice sighed with mild regret. "Not at all regrettable!" "Right now, rumors are flying all over outside, and both Holy Masters are at the crucial stage of their closed retreat—completely unreachable. The hearts of the people across the Chaotic Star Sea are trembling. Even our inner palace disciples within the Star Palace are beginning to lose confidence. The affairs here now entirely depend on us elder ones holding things together. Yet both the Positive and the Negative forces are growing restless and active. We find it hard to contain the situation. While we're not afraid of facing either one individually, we're deeply concerned that they might suddenly unite—then things would truly become problematic. After all, even the mad old woman from the Wàn Fǎ Mén and the Six Paths Master from Shèng Mó Island could only retreat three steps when faced with our Master's Yuanmagnetic Divine Light. The activation of the Iron-Flame Ant and Silver-Light Mouse seals was also a last resort—beyond these two, no other seals could inflict such severe damage on a Jian Dan-stage cultivator. Without these, neither the warning effect nor our firm stance would be conveyed. As for your concern that they might use this as an excuse to stir up trouble, you're simply overthinking it. Observing their current postures, it's certain they'll once again head toward that Xū Tiān Ding. They won't even lose their own disciples—there's no reason for them to go to such lengths. At most, they'll just be quietly frustrated.